For Chinese Moms, Birth Means 30 Days In Pajamas

New parents Wu Lili (left) and Mo Shiwei hold their 29-day-old baby boy. The new mom is staying at the Weige center in Beijing, which provides luxury accommodation and 24-hour nursing staff to woman who are participating in the Chinese tradition of "sitting the month."

The Weige Center provides luxury accommodation and a full-time nursing staff. Wu and the baby haven't left this apartment since she arrived from the hospital, and she has only had sponge baths since giving birth.

"Sitting the month" is traditionally about letting the mothers recover from childbirth and restoring balance to their bodies through a special diet. At this luxury center, nurses take over when the babies fuss.

The Weige Center is run out of a luxury apartment building in central Beijing. It charges upwards of $500 a day for its services, including accommodation, six meals a day for the new mothers and a 24-hour nursing staff.

A photo wall in the reception area of the Weige Center shows babies who have been nurtured here. Babies and new moms spend their first 30 days together being pampered by nurses. The clientele are mostly wealthy Chinese, though some Chinese women married to foreign men patronize the center.

New parents Wu Lili (left) and Mo Shiwei hold their 29-day-old baby boy, nicknamed Momo, at the Weige Center in Beijing. The new mother is participating in the Chinese tradition of "sitting the month," in which she follows certain rules, such as not going outside, not washing her hair or showering, and only eating certain foods.

A nurse tends to baby Momo at the Weige Center in Beijing. The center provides luxury accommodation and 24-hour nursing staff to new mothers who participate in the Chinese tradition of "sitting the month," where they don't go outside or bathe for 30 days.

Andrea Hsu
/ NPR

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Originally published on May 23, 2012 11:38 am

Imagine not being allowed to go outside, have a shower or drink cold water for an entire month. It might sound like a kind of house arrest. But every year tens of millions of Chinese women submit to this willingly. This is the traditional Chinese practice of confinement during the month after childbirth, with some modern twists.

Baby Momo and his mother, Wu Lili, haven't left the three rooms of an apartment in Beijing for 29 days now. It's the last day of their traditional 30-day confinement period.

In Chinese, this is literally called "sitting the month," as new mothers are pretty much expected to just sit around in pajamas for a month to recover from childbirth. But there are a lot of rules, and Wu Lili is struggling with them — even though she's on her very last day.

"I really want to eat fruit and the other things I'm not allowed to eat, like snacks," Wu says.

She's not allowed to eat raw fruit or vegetables, or drink coffee, cold drinks or even cold water, which can only be drunk tepid or hot. These rules are aimed at restoring balance to the new mother's body after childbirth. But Wu has had enough.

"It's really the hardest thing to bear about confinement," she says. "The first thing is that you can't wash. The second thing is that the food is so bland. But you really have to persist, and it's very difficult."

Her feet, she says, are boiling, as she plods around in thick woolen socks and padded slippers. But she must guard against getting a chill; Chinese doctors warn that could lead to joint problems or illness later on.

"Sitting the month," or zuo yuezi, is deeply embedded in Chinese culture. It was even mentioned in the 2,000-year-old Book of Changes, or I-ching, according to Zhao Zixiang, Wu's doctor of traditional Chinese medicine.

"Chinese people are most concerned about balancing yin and yang, in all things," he says. "If the yin and yang in your body are balanced, you won't get sick. If they're out of balance, it's easy to get sick."

When little Momo wails, a nurse swoops in to take control, wheeling the baby off to another room.

Wu is "sitting the month" as only China's newly rich can. Instead of being at home, she went straight from the hospital to a superluxury confinement center that costs around $500 a day. That buys peace of mind: 24-hour-a-day supervision from trained nurses; a nutritionist; doctors on call to diagnose every baby sniffle; and someone ensuring that the rules are followed at all times — not just by the new mother but by her extended family too.

"My mum thinks it's a pity that she can't come in every day to cuddle my baby," Wu says, enumerating the reasons she's been given for this by the center's experts. "It's not very good for the development of newborn baby's bones to be cuddled too much. We don't want him being held too much as he might become too dependent. I pretty much only hold him when I nurse him."

And the rules governing diet are stricter still. At this postpartum center, six meals a day are prepared off-site, including a host of special soups, designed to increase the new mothers' milk supply. Typical fare is a soup of pig's feet and peanuts, or an oily carp soup, drunk directly after childbirth, which is supposed to stimulate the milk supply to begin.

Such postpartum centers are popping up in cities across China. But the founder of this center, Ren Weige, says it's as high-end as they go.

"It's impossible that the environment could be more luxurious than this," she says. "We're in a five-star serviced apartment. My [caregivers] are all trained nurses. Whatever way you look at it, either from the software or the hardware, this is already the best that it could be."

That even means that new mothers are hand-washed by two nurses, who wipe them down with washcloths steeped in Chinese medicine about once a week. They're not supposed to bathe for 30 days following childbirth, but the strictures of traditional confinement are being bent to the needs of modern women. Some argue that this new generation of Chinese mothers — who, as part of the generation of only children under the one-child policy, have not grown up with younger brothers or sisters — need help more than ever before.

"They're kids themselves," says the center's pediatrician, Zhang Jianna. "They don't really know how to look after kids. So they have even more demands. They're just happy that someone knows what to do."

A nurse is even teaching Wu Lili how to sing lullabies to little Momo, though halfway through the new mom gives up. At this postpartum center, paid nurses show the new mothers what to do, rather than their own mothers or aunties. And the center has tweaked some of the stricter rules, such as the prohibition on washing.

But despite China's warp speed modernization, the age-old practice of "sitting the month" is still flourishing among its young — and making money for its entrepreneurs.

Copyright 2012 National Public Radio. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.

Transcript

MICHELE NORRIS, host:

From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Michele Norris.

ROBERT SIEGEL, host:

And I'm Robert Siegel.

Imagine not being allowed to go outside or take a shower or even drink cold water for an entire month. It might sound like a kind of house arrest, but every year, tens of millions of Chinese women submit to this willingly. It is the traditional practice of confinement during the month after childbirth.

For the latest in our series Beginnings, NPR's Louisa Lim reports from Beijing on a modern twist to this age-old custom.

(Soundbite of crying baby)

LOUISA LIM: Baby Momo fusses, as his parents try to figure out what's wrong. He and his mother, Wu Lili, haven't left the three rooms of this apartment for 29 days now. It's the last day of their traditional 30-day confinement period. This is literally called Sitting the Month in Chinese, as new mothers are pretty much expected to just sit around in pajamas for a month, to recover from childbirth. But there are a lot of rules.

Ms. WU LILI: (Through Translator) I really want to eat fruit and other things I'm not supposed to eat, like snacks.

LIM: She's also not allowed to bathe or shower. No coffee, no raw food, no cold drinks - even water. This is aimed at restoring balance to the new mother's body after childbirth. And although she's into the very last day, Wu Lili is struggling with those rules.

Ms. WU: (Through Translator) It's really the hardest thing to bear, the fact that you can't wash, that the food is so bland. But you really have to persist and it's very difficult.

LIM: Her feet, she says, are boiling, as she plods around in thick woolen socks and padded slippers. But she must guard against getting a chill; Chinese doctors warn that could lead to joint problems or illness later on.

Sitting the Month is deeply embedded in Chinese culture. It was even mentioned in the 2,000-year-old "Book of Changes," or "I-ching," according to Zhao Zixiang, her doctor of traditional Chinese medicine.

Dr. ZHAO ZIXIANG: (Through Translator) Chinese people are most concerned about balancing yin and yang in all things. If the yin and yang in your body are balanced, you won't get sick. If they're out of balance, it's easy to get sick.

(Soundbite of crying baby)

LIM: As little Momo wails, a nurse swoops in to take control, wheeling the baby off to another room. Wu Lili is Sitting the Month as only China's newly rich can. Instead of being at home, she went straight from hospital to a super-luxury confinement centre. She's paying around $500 a day. That buys peace of mind - 24-hour supervision from trained nurses, a nutritionist, doctors on call to diagnose every baby sniffle, and someone ensuring you follow the rules at all times. And not just you, but your extended family, too.

Ms. WU: (Through Translator) My mom thinks it's a pity that she can't come every day to cuddle my baby. But cuddling too much isn't good for the development of the baby's bones. If he's held too much, he might become too dependent. I pretty much only hold him when I nurse him.

LIM: For nursing mothers, diet is key. Their six meals a day are prepared off-site. Here, the cooks are singeing pigs' feet over a flame, ready to turn into a soup with peanuts. That, and a host of other special soups, are supposed to increase new mothers' milk supply.

Postpartum centers are popping up in cities across China. But the founder of this centre, Ren Weige says it's as high-end as they go.

Ms. REN WEIGE: (Through Translator) Nothing could be more luxurious than this. My caregivers are all trained nurses. From the software to the hardware, this is already the best that it can be.

(Soundbite of water)

LIM: That even means hand-washing new mothers, who aren't supposed to take a bath or shower for 30 days.

Ms. ZHANG XUEFU: (Chinese language spoken)

LIM: That's nice, says Zhang Xuefu. She's being wiped down by two nurses using washcloths steeped in Chinese medicine. This is only her third sponge bath in three weeks. This is one way the strictures of traditional confinement are being bent to the needs of modern women. And this new generation of Chinese moms - who've not got younger brothers or sisters - need help more than ever before, according to the center's pediatrician, Zhang Jianna.

LIM: A nurse is even teaching Wu Lili how to sing lullabies to little Momo.

(Soundbite of singing)

LIM: Though halfway through, the new mom gives up. It may be paid help, not grandmas or aunties showing the new mothers what to do. And maybe some of the stricter rules have been tweaked. But despite China's warp speed modernization, the age-old practice of Sitting the Month is still flourishing among its young.